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JANUARY
2004 SELECTIONS
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It's impossible to understand the utter seductiveness of Merlot until you experience it, and once you do, it's hard not to fall in love. An extremely outgoing wine, Merlot eagerly reveals its soul, inspiring confessions, insights and revelations. The best Merlots are supple, velvety-textured wines that explode with wild and effusive plum and cherry fruit. Each sip lights up the heart and sparks the imagination. In bordeaux-style blends, it is the kinder, gentler influence that softens the tannins of its robust cousin, Cabernet Sauvignon. Merlot is perhaps most famous for being the primary grape in the great wines of St-Emilion and Pomerol in Bordeaux, including Chateau Petrus, the world's most expensive wine. In the warm, sunny, maritime climate of Long Island it can produce robust, lusty wines with a plump, lush fruitiness that are just impossible to resist.
Aged 14 months in American and French oak. The 1999 Merlot comprises of concentrations of cherry with hints of raspberry, subtle spice and soft tannins. Created in a style more Bordeaux than California, the '99 vintage is fruity, spicy and mouth-filling.
90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc. Cooperage: Fourteen months of barrel aging in a blend of 10% new French oak / 90% American oak
Made by Rivendell Winery, this label was introduced for the opening of the first Vintage New York store in Soho. Soft and inviting, this is a perfect Merlot for everyday. The fresh, vibrant fruit from Long Island, with just enough toasty oak to make it more interesting.
Chardonnay is a wine of many faces, with ripe, luscious styles that explode on your palate with exotic tropical fruits, along with more subtle, elegant versions that emphasize bright citrus flavors and mineral nuances. Chardonnay has become the dominant white wine grape in the Finger Lakes and on Long Island. Rather than try to imitate the rich, buttery style of California Chardonnay, New York winemakers have sought to define their own unique, individualistic styles that express the spirit of each region with clarity, purity, ripe fruit and elegance. And have done so with amazing success.
This dynamite easy-drinking Chardonnay has all the right elements - crisp mouthfeel, bright fruit flavors and a dose of toasty, yet not overpowering oak. A great value in an excellent food-friendly wine.
A classic example of this varietal. This wine offers aromas of pears, apple, and spice, and has a long, soft finish.
Ripe melon flavors with vanilla overtones. This beautiful wine is the perfect match for broiled seafood.
The sweetest and fullest bodied style of sherry, Cream sherry is a wonderful dessert sipping wine and is an excellent warmer-upper during the cold winter months. These three will have you thinking you are vacationing in Spain...
Winemaker Tim Benedict used some older Chardonnay and Riesling as a base wine and with advice from accomplished sherry maker Dominic Carisetti, produced a wonderful, rich, nutty, amber cream sherry.
Made at America's oldest winery, this is a richly mellow wine with a velvety smoothness.
This cream sherry is full bodied, moderately sweet, with a warm, amber color and rich, bourbon aromas and flavors.
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